Typically, an elevator car travels along a pair of opposing guide rails located in a shaft or hoist way of a building structure. It is customary to employ four guides members (e.g., roller guides or slide guides) per elevator car to guide the elevator car along the guide rails as the car is moved in a shaft or hoist way. It is equally customary to employ guide members (e.g., roller guides or slide guides) for the counterweight for a given elevator car.
Two of the guide members are secured to the upper portion of the elevator car or a corresponding counterweight in such a manner as to engage the corresponding guide rail. The remaining two guides members are secured to the lower portion of the elevator car or a corresponding counterweight in a similar manner to engage the corresponding guide rail. The guide members may be roller guides having a plurality of rollers that engage and travel along the corresponding guide rail. Typically, each roller guide includes three or six rollers. The present invention is not limited to elevator roller guides having a particular number of rollers or guide members that have rollers. Rather, the present invention can be used with elevator roller guides having differing numbers of rollers or guide members that do not have any rollers (e.g., slide guides).
Guide members typically include a base having a fixed pattern of openings through which bolts extend to mount or connect the guides members to the corresponding component of the elevator (e.g., frame of an elevator car or component of a counterweight). The pattern of openings in the base of different guides members typically differ, i.e., no standard exists for the pattern of openings in the base of the differing types of guide member.
Over time or with advancement in guide members it becomes necessary to replace the existing guide member. This replacement process typically requires an installer to measure the existing hole pattern of the elevator component whose guide member is to be replaced. If it is determined that the existing hole pattern of the elevator component whose guides members are to be replaced differs from the hole pattern of the replacement guide member, then the installer must fabricate an adapter plate that will compensate for the two differing hole patterns. The above process of measuring and comparing the existing hole pattern of the elevator component to the hole pattern of the replacement guide member and then fabricating an adapter plate specific to the replacement guide member is extremely time consuming.
In an effort to overcome the aforementioned time-consuming process, adapter kits/mounting assemblies have been developed one of which is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,251,186 and another of which is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 9,708,161. However, previously developed adapter kits/mounting assemblies include one or more adjustable/moveable components which when the elevator is subjected to a seismic or other significant force generating event will cause the operational position of the guide member relative to a rail of the elevator to be altered/changed. As such, the previously known adapter kits/mounting assemblies cannot be used in geographical areas where the elevator component may be subjected to a seismic or other significant force generating event.
Hence, there exists a significant need for a device that can readily allow a guide member having a hole pattern different from the hole pattern of an elevator component to be connected to the elevator component wherein the device is configured such that when the elevator is subjected to a seismic or other significant force generating event the operational position of the guide member relative to a rail of the elevator remains unchanged.
Further, there exists a significant need for a guide member that can compensate for differences in hole patterns without any intermediate element or elements mounted between the base of the guide member and the surface of the elevator component that the base of the guide member is directly mounted on.